Punish Me
by A Pretty White Lie
Summary: Ciel makes the mistake of attempted theft and gets caught. But when he comes face to face with an undeniably attractive cop, perhaps it was a mistake worth making.
1. Chapter 1

**This is my first time writing, but I hope you enjoy!**

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In spite of opening just a few months ago, May's Cafe's business flourished insubstantially and soon was the town's most impressive, most loved coffeehouse. The quaint, fashionably-shabby bistro was often jampacked in the afternoon, where customers often lined up the curb waiting to order their beloved drink. In the morning however, earlybirds often accommodated the chairs. Half-awake eyes mindless of what happened around them, which is why a certain sixteen year old boy deemed this unearthly time of the day as the ideal time for his upcoming mischief.

Ciel fidgeted in his seat, nervously scanning the cafe, noting every corner and speck for a hidden camera or perhaps meddling eyes watching him and potentially interfering with his plan. It was quite early, the sun had barely risen and it was still fairly dark out. Through the windows, cobbled streets were lit from the dim glow of light posts, giving him enough view to see curious passersby peeking in the small cafe. He sipped his bitter, unsugared coffee, trusting it to help curb his trepidation.

He did his best to hide his tension lest someone begins to take notice, though failing at it. If someone would give him a better look, he was obviously distracted, but fortunately enough, no one paid him any attention.

The room had three other people besides him and a lanky, sickly-looking woman picking at a croissant from a platter; his victim.

He was going to rob her.

Ciel knew this was wrong. He could be caught and get arrested for, what, maybe two years, or god forbid, a whole decade. Plausibly, he would not live long enough for his promised liberation and rot in prison. So, even while being adequately knowledgeable to the consequences of theft, why did he choose to dislodge his conscience and steal? Couldn't he just follow the small voice, leave the store without compunction, and continue as an innocent law-abiding citizen?

_'But you are starved and without money in your pocket. You will die if you do not steal,'_ his grim conscience scolded him.

After his parent's death ten month ago, he'd felt the deepest depression he never imagined. The servants left right after, unwilling to offer services to someone who had nothing to pay. He had no relatives to look after him and ultimately refused adoption as a choice. He was left penniless and alone in the cold walls of his glum, lifeless mansion, only surviving through the ready-to-eat food supply conveniently in the stock room. Eventually, he ran out of goods and was forced to leave his cave to hunt for food.

Ciel wiped the sweat trickling down his forehead with the back of his cold hand, which burned in contact with his scalding face. Supple fingers shakily delved for the knife in his pocket to reassure himself he wasn't at all defenseless, in case things got out of hand.

He observed the unsuspecting people on the other side of the room, a man opposite the wall read the newspaper, and a woman at the far side corner with her son prodding her to go home. His victim, sensless of any forthcoming danger, sat conveniently (for Ciel, atleast) near his table, therefore deemed the easiest target.

After ten minutes of reviewing his plan, he decided to take action. It all happened in the haste of twelve seconds.

With unsteady feet, he strode to the woman, gripped her wrists and quickly pulled her to the adjoined personnel room, less than five feet away from where the woman situated herself. The woman, quite shocked, tried to yank his hand away though unsuccessfully. Ciel grunted and gripped her tighter, securing that she twist her hand and escape. He puffed out a breath he didn't realize he was holding and silently applauded himself. It was a relatively small space, he noted, completely dark, scarcely lit by a tiny glassless window on the ceiling.

Ciel quieted and listened for any sign that someone had witnessed his little stunt, but all was quiet as well outside the door.

"Give me your money.", Ciel said through gritted teeth, doing his best to look threatening, as threatening as a baby-faced sixteen year old could get to a towering adult.

Nonetheless, the woman was surprised, but quickly turned impassive and breathed a derisive laugh into the boy's face and spat, "Or you'll do what? Tell your mommy on me? How frightening." her face feigned a look of apprehension then morphed into an ugly sneer. For a sickly-looking woman, she had attitude.

Ciel did not appreciate being looked down on (literally) and was about to retort but she added, "Listen boy, I don't know what game you're playing but I don't have time for-" she was cut off as Ciel pulled out the knife and held it to her throat. He was careful not to get it too close to her neck and hurt her. He was a good benevolent Christian and didn't want go against God. Or so he liked to think.

"I am not playing with you! Now shut up and give me your money.", this time, the woman seemed genuinely alarmed.

"P-please don't kill me! I have a three year old son to take care of and he needs me!" the woman started to tear up, her eyes closed tightly and truly, Ciel pitied her. But he needed this.

_I have nothing else to lose,_ he thought bitterly, but it was true. His life has been void of any direction for far too long, and the only thing he had left to gamble was himself.

"Give me your wallet and no one's gonna get hur-" Ciel didn't bother to finish when he heard the floor behind the door creak. Someone was coming. He wrenched the woman into the side, covered her mouth and prayed they not be found.

He could see the a shadow peeking through the crevice beneath the door, still and quiet, as if it were waiting for them to make a noise.

He started to hear footsteps walk away after an infinite several seconds, the shadow slowly trudging away. Ciel didn't move yet just to be completely assured the person was gone. The woman squirmed, trying to break free from his vice-like grip, but could only manage to bite him. Ciel didn't think and cursed aloud when he felt teeth sink harshly into skin, then the door slammed open.

Fuck.

"Fuck." Ciel sighed as he sit still in the bleak, nondescript room. The walls were a tasteless yellow, two windows lined on one side, and the creaky floor full of dust and mold. Ciel didn't know mold grew on dry wood but apparently it did. The room was completely empty save the chair he situated on interim.

He fiddled his shackled hands, head downcast in humiliation, regret, despondence, and fear. What was he gonna do? After the little encounter with the woman, the owner busted him. Apparently, the kid on the other side of the cafe saw him and told his mother, who in turn, told the owner. Now, he was told to wait in a room while a police was preparing to question and nudge an explanation out of him. Ciel wasn't even planning to try to fool and convince the person to free him. He deserved this, and wholly embraced the punishment to come. But acceptance didn't stop him from dread. He dreaded the atrocities and hardships that would be surely forced on him. The boy had a weak, lithe body that could handle carrying no more than the weight of a grocery bag, much less survive on one meal per day.

He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard the door unlock and the knob turning slowly. He heard a cough and Ciel directed his attention to the man. "Hello," a tall man most likely in his early twenties greeted him, with soft black wisps of hair across his face and down to his chiseled jaw, his lips curved into a smirk. Amused burgundy eyes locked onto his face, observing him observe him.

Needless to say, the man was attractive.

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**Hii!**

**I thank you for taking the time to read this chapter, I truly appreciate it!**

**I'll be honest, I've not decided whether this will be a two-chapter or a multichapter fic, I'll leave the decision to you. Most likely, just a twoshot unless you convince me otherwise. Please review, it'll help me lots! ^-^**


	2. Chapter 2

**I randomly google searched my internet alias, a-pretty-white-lie and this fanfiction popped out, and I thought, 'oooh right! I wrote a fanfiction a year ago! :D' and with a fresh perspective, I reread it and I thought that this wasn't **_**that**_** bad ehehe. And I saw that it had 12 follows o.o That 's a feat, I never expected this to even have more than five hahaha. Do I still even have active followers here? xD Nonetheless, on to the next chapter~~~**

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"Ciel Phantomhive, I presume?"

The moping teenager nodded, head downcast in shame, and glared at him as the man read a record of sorts in his hand. The dark-haired man had introduced himself as Sebastian Michaelis, to which Ciel simply rolled his eyes. And what use would he have of knowing his name? He was the devil for all he cared, pushing him into a pit of scorching lava with his pitchfork of doom.

The hand cuffs biting into his skin started to bother him, "Could we just get this over with?" Ciel impatiently said when five minutes of silence passed, with Sebastian simply reading and writing on paper.

Sebastian looked up at him and smirked, "You seem thrilled to put yourself to prison, Mr. Phantomhive," He hummed and said in a low voice, "You've had quite an eventful year, I must say, having lost your parents just months ago."

"Shut up," Ciel hissed at him. How dare he nag himself into another person's business? "And what does my background have to do with any of this?" he spat derisively.

"Much, actually," Sebastian answered matter-of-factually, his eyes flickering in amusement. "I checked to see if you've had any more criminal records."

"And it took you five minutes when there is absolutely nothing to see?" Ciel snorted and cast him a baleful glare. "It looks to me that you've read more than you are tasked to do."

Sebastian stifled a chuckle and instead ignored his witty statement, "Tell me, Mr. Phantomhive, what have you been doing these past few months?"

Ciel didn't answer and looked down, suddenly finding the floor enthralling. He wondered how many delinquents in the past have sat on this exact spot, he pitied them, having to deal with this merciless meandering. His eyes locked on to the moldy patch on the far side of the floor. How curious.

"Are you listening?" Sebastian interrupted, displeased that he was completely forgotten.

Ciel blinked and looked at him stupidly.

" I said that you will be asked to pay a sum."

Ciel gulped, preparing himself for the answer, "How much?"

Sebastian smilled, "500$."

Ciel jolted, his sudden movement making the cuff's chain clink softly._ FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS!_ Ciel mentally screamed, jaw dropping, eyes widening to almost cartoonish proportions. "I-I…" He stuttered and trailed off, unable to find the right words.

Sebastian chuckled, "I'm just kidding." He found how Ciel's mouth formed into an 'o' quite endearing.

"You asshole!" He bellowed. Fuck the police. This imbecile, this despicable cheeky regretfully-good looking excuse for a human being would joke in such a situation?! Surely there was some regulation that prohibited such facetious behaviour.

Sebastian, still clearly amused from his outburst, cleared his throat and seriously said, "Since this is your first offence, and a minor at that, you will only get a diversion."

"A diversion?" Ciel replied, irritatedly.

Sebastian nodded, "You will be asked to do 168 hours of community service," he seemed to ponder for a moment, then smirked, "Or would you rather pay charges of 500$ and sustain a criminal record?"

Ciel shook his head franticly. If he did succeeded in stealing from the woman, he couldn't have stolen more than fifty dollars, and now he was expected to pay ten times than what he bargained for! He didn't have the money to buy food, much less pluck out five hundred fucking dollars from his pocket. It wasn't funny.

"So, what am I supposed to do in those 168 hours?" Ciel sincerely hoped it wouldn't be too hard. In those ten months he had confined himself in his house, not once did he bother to do anything productive.

Sebastian smirked knowingly, and purred, "You'll see."

Ciel gulped. He didn't like the look Sebastian was giving him.

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Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Ciel lifted the long rusted rod and pushed back, shuffling his feet along as he dumped the leaves collected at the rod's teeth to the pile directly behind him, almost tripping from stepping on a moist patch of bare soil. The sun blazed brightly above him, burning the nape of his neck if not for the large straw hat protecting his head.

Looking over the frazzled garden and seeing that he was not halfway finished, he groaned tiredly, decided to rest for a little while, and set the rake down, sitting below the shade of a nearby tree. Perhaps offering to start community service right away hadn't been such a smart idea. Back inside the cool confines of the room, all he wanted was to get this over with.

_Sebastian raised an eyebrow, "Are you sure you want to start today?"_

"_I said it already, don't make me regret my decision!"_

"_Good luck raking the whole garden," Sebastian smiled slyly and raised his hand towards the window, "I hear it's the hottest day of summer."_

Ciel scowled at the ground from thinking of the man, ripping a cluster of grass from the ground and throwing the straw hat he gave him at the pile of leaves angrily. "Fuck you, Sebastian!"

Ciel was startled when he heard a low chuckle from behind him, and promptly scampered to his feet. When he saw who the intruder was, he sneered. Speak of the devil. Sebastian was the last person he wanted to see at the moment.

"What are you doing here?!" he hissed, blushing that Sebastian had seen his little tantrum. He didn't want to be given more unwarranted harassment.

"And hello to you too, little Phantomhive." Sebastian grinned, "But I'm afraid lying about is not permitted during community service. Perhaps next time, I'll personally keep an eye on you. And do spare the grass from your outrage."

Ciel glared at the man, he had been working straight for the past three hours, he deserved a break! "So what if I do? You'll tell the police?" The bastard's mere presence annoyed Ciel unremittingly, and he almost considered hitting his head with the rake.

Sebastian glared at him, trying to look upset from his comment, "You best shut that mouth, Phantomhive, lest you want a direr punishment be granted to you."

Ciel didn't respond, but continued to give him a menacing look nonetheless. At that moment, his stomach decided to growl. Ciel blushed furiously, turning his head away bashfully and covering his abdomen with his arms. It was one in the afternoon and he hadn't had anything other than the coffee that morning

_Cute, _Sebastian thought.

He smiled, "You're probably starving. I'm actually on my way to buy food, I'll give you a one-hour break for you to eat lunch as well." He sauntered towards the boy, and motioned for him to give him his palm.

Ciel gave hive him a confused look and reluctantly opened his hand. He didn't want a one-hour break. He wanted to go home.

Sebastian handed him ten dollars. Ciel's eyes widened and pushed the money to the man's chest. "I don't want your stupid money!"

Sebastian sighed, "Don't be so stubborn, I don't want to be blamed that I'm overworking you once you faint from hunger." He asked for his hand again."Take it."

"No."

Sebastian humphed, strutting away, and muttered to himself "Suit yourself, insolent brat."

Ciel glared at his retreating back and situated himself back to his spot below the tree. As he lay down, he felt his hand glide over rough paper, he took it gingerly and saw that it was the ten dollars he crumpled not more than a minute ago. He looked back at the man in the distance, whom he caught watching him. The man winked at him and turned to walk away, snickering. Ciel opened his mouth to yell, but his grumbling stomach scolded him.

"Perhaps I will." He sighed defeatedly.

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**I hoped you liked it~ Kind of rushed it. eue I finished it in a day wow? Usually it takes me a month LOL**


	3. Chapter 3

**Ten more follows after the last chapter! I am very grateful! ^^I was so pumped up to write immediately. xD I can't believe that I'm writing much faster than I used to.**

**I don't own Kuroshitsuji. **** I haven't bothered with a disclaimer in the past chapters, so there!**

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**6/168 hours**

Ciel had been relieved that the diversion program granted him permit to return home after he had finished all entreated work. Relieved, but not happy. The following morning, after gladly trudging his way to bed the previous night without bothering to change his clothes, the boy had been reluctant to leave the comfort of his sheets. He told himself that he'll be just snoozing for a few more minutes, but that few minutes passed by easily and Ciel soon found himself slumping too snugly, and unknowingly slept for hours more.

The doorbell's noxious ringing was what finally woke him up in alarm, unused to visitors. He cursed when he read 10:30 on the clock and promptly left the bed. He hastily changed to clean clothes (his clothes was completely filthy and smudged with dirt) in a flurry of navy blue and white and scampered to the front door coming face to face a with a bespectacled cop. The man nodded at him in greeting and told him Sebastian had been waiting for him the last three hours. Scoffing, Ciel answered he'll be back, and was about to close the door to take a quick shower, but the man stopped him before the door hit the threshold and said that the Chief had ordered him to _obtain_ Ciel at once. He didn't give Ciel a chance to reply and dragged his arm to his car. While being cuffed in front of the car (as if he would even attempt to escape from the bigger man), he gave dirty looks to the nosey people outside who had been watching the exchange, wondering why a police car pulled up in front of the teen's house. Ciel heard them whispering about 'the Phantomhives' miserable luck' much to his distaste.

En route to the precinct, the cop (whose name was William according to an ID he found in the car) lectured him about punctuality and how delinquents like him only made his work more difficult. When he finished his speech, Ciel whispered obscenities to himself, and apparently, William heard him since he started on another round of a soliloquy.

Ciel reflected on his bitter morning, having a feeling that the rest of his day wouldn't fare any better. This time, he was led to a different room of what appeared to be an office. The walls were painted thick stripes of pine and chestnut, and unlike the ugly empty yellow room, this one was fully furnished. As Ciel dreaded raking under the broiling heat of the sun again, he noticed several picture frames sitting on a bureau and stood up to inspect them.

The boy came closer to inspect the first one from the left, and saw that was it was of a white cat inside a toy capsule rolling around a garden. Ciel snorted. The next one was of a slightly younger Sebastian, and behind him were a couple which Ciel assumed to be his parents, judging from the man's wine eyes and the woman's ebony hair much like like the older man's.

The last one was a photograph of Sebastian with a brunette woman hugging him and pecking him on the cheek. Ciel almost choked and felt something flutter inside him. Ofcourse Sebastian had a girlfriend.

The door opened, startling him and he quickly scuffed back to his chair. Ciel felt a sense of deja vu when he saw Sebastian enter.

Closing the door, Sebastian smiled politely, "Good afternoon, Mister Phantomhive." Sauntering to the work table and comfortably seating himself on the cushioned chair, he playfully drifted his hand to Ciel's shoulder as he passed by him.

Ciel recoiled from the uncalled for physical contact and muttered a curt hello, not meeting his eyes.

Sebastian frowned, finding his reaction odd, he expected him to slap his hand away and glare at him. Sebastian chose to wave it off in the moment and smirked, "Guess what task I have chosen for you today." That was sure to stir him up, hopefully.

Much to Sebastian's dismay, Ciel's response was an abrupt "Okay."

If Sebastian wasn't surprised before, he was now. Ciel was rather quiet today. "I am worried, Ciel. Is something bothering you?" Perhaps Ciel truly was sick today, which explained his late appearance. Sebastian thought of letting him skip work for the day.

Even Ciel didn't know why he was acting like this. If all the disastrous proceedings that had transpired that morning wasn't enough to make Ciel stumble, then why did the simple knowledge that Sebastian was in a relationship completely render him unresponsive? Sebastian was a man that he'd met no more than a day ago, he barely even knew anything about him, and yet here he was, making him baffled, scared, and something else he couldn't pinpoint just yet.

He didn't like it. Ciel did not enjoy feeling. This was the exact reason he easily recovered from the trauma of his parent's sudden death, not _quickly_, but much more _easily_ than someone would have had in his context. He simply refused to deal with them, new feelings he was not previously familiar with. Perhaps Ciel still hasn't even recovered at all, perhaps all the grief, all the emotional injury, and dare the dreadful word be said, _depression_, was still bottled up inside, buried twenty feet below the pretense of nonchalance.

Ciel's chest started to feel tight and he began to heave.

"Ciel, answer me. Are you feeling unwell?" Sebastian's brows furrowed, and he stood up, raising his hand to feel the younger one's forehead "If so, perhaps I can call for a doctor-"

He needed some time to think. "Don't touch me!" Ciel cried and bolted for the door, which unfortunately for him, was locked.

Ciel couldn't hold it any longer, his legs gave him away and he crumpled to ground.

"CIEL-

And that was the last of what Ciel could remember before he felt himself slacken, his vision dimming and disappearing altogether.

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Ciel woke up, hesitantly opening his eyes and seeing his familiar brown ceiling, he sighed in relief when he realized it was all a dream. Ciel was baffled, why on earth would he dream about Sebastian in a relationship? It was too random. He yawned and closed his eyes, deciding to ponder and solve his dream for a while, sinking deeper to the bedsheets, completely covering his head. Somehow, the sheets smelled quite different today, but Ciel didn't seem to mind, this new smell was rather pleasant.

Ciel felt something tugging on his arm, almost gving Ciel a heart attack.

_What the hell?_

When he sat up, making the bedsheets spill to his lap, he realized it was not his bed. His eyes narrowed in confusion. Where was he?

He felt something moist and rough graze his arm and he jolted. When he eyed the obtruder, he gasped and promptly stood to leave the bed. He tripped, unaware that the sheets locked his legs together, sending him crashing to the wooden floor in a soft thud. _Pathetic,_ he scoffed at himself.

Lo, the door knob twisted, alerting Ciel that someone was about to enter. _Ofcourse,_ he thought bitterly, the universe seemed to take a good laugh from his misfortune. _Ofcourse someone would come in at this moment. _Ciel scrambled to free himself from the sheets, hoping to save what little pride he had left, but his attempt only served to entangle his legs more so.

Sebastian entered, and saw Ciel in his questionable position, his hands slopped to the ground, serving as a pedestal to hold his head and torso from falling to the paneled floor, but his lower body still fastened to the bed's surface, sort of a sloping position.

Ciel sighed and prepared himself from the array of teasing remarks that was sure to escape the man's lips, and was caught offguard when the man helped him up instead, and breathed in a worried tone, "Ciel, are you okay?"

"Thank you, I'm fine." he replied, the word foreign from his tongue. He placed his hand on Sebastian's shoulder, steadying himself. After Sebastian helped him from detaching the sheet from his body, he sat on the bed, blushing in embarassment. He regarded Sebastian's outfit, he wore loose pants and a fitted, black tank top, he eyed the lean muscles that spilled from what little the thin cotton covered. As he removed his hand from his shoulder, he slyly skimmed his hand over the taut muscles, feeling the tense tissues under his skin, and he unknowingly hummed in appreciation. He imagined all the combat training and the hours he spent from repelling crooks with that arm. He'd never realized how muscular Sebastian was before, his arms had always been hidden under the obstructing sleeves of his officer uniform. A uniform was sexy, but _this_ was sexier, and Ciel almost found himself drooling.

Sebastian chuckled, pulling Ciel from his trance, "You can enjoy the view later." He winked teasingly, then kneeled in front of him, "In the meantime, tell me what happened to you earlier."

Ciel's blush dissipated and he pursed his lips. Apparently, it was no dream at all. "I-I.." he stuttered.

"Hm?"

"Why are you here anyways?" His eyes quickly browsed around the room, he admired the grand furnitures made out of first class materials, much like the ones he had at home. The walls were a beautiful burgundy red. _Like Sebastian's eyes_, he thought.

He chuckled, "Because this is my room."

Ciel seemed to mumble a barely audible 'oh' and he wondered, how could a low-paying cop afford such pieces? Then he remembered William referring to him as Chief, which also explained why he had a large office of his own at the precinct.

He was about to demand him to release him at once when he watched in horror as a white furball hopped onto his thighs. Now he knew the little imp that tugged at him earlier. He lifted the animal with his hand thoughtlessly and the poor thing mewled in discomfort, "I hate cats."

Sebastian gasped disbelievingly, taking the exotic shorthair from his hand and held her gingerly into his arms and close to his chest, stroking the diminutive kitten lovingly. "There, there, Cupcake." How could anyone hate the little furball of cuteness?

The kitten meowed happily and pawed at Sebastian's face adorably, making the ebony haired man aw.

Ciel rolled his eyes, "Why a cat of all things?" He glared at the cat who poked her tongue out at him, "Dogs are much more cuter." Ciel reminisced on the cream chow chow he owned as a preteen. He missed the little thing, how Princess would often nudge at him below the dining table as he ate, silently asking to be fed.** He received her as a gift from his parents on his middle school graduation.

_Parents._

Almost instantaneously, Ciel's expression turned sullen.

Sebastian sighed and giving Cupcake a pat, he set her down, and the kitten mewed reluctantly, speeding off. He ran a hand through his dark hair, "There you go again, Ciel, so moody. Tell me right now what happened to you, or what I could've possibly done for you to suddenly turn so.. hostile to me."

Ciel looked away from him, gazing outside the window directly above the bed. Outside, he saw the precinct. Apparently, Sebastian lived just across his workplace. "Let me work now." He muttered.

"Not until you tell me what's wrong."

At that moment, the door opened and a woman peeked in. In a mellow tone, she asked, "Is he alright now, sweet?"

"He's alright." Sebastian replied softly.

"That's wonderful."

And before the woman could close the door and leave, Ciel peered behind Sebastian and was astounded when he recognized her as the woman he saw in the photograph that early afternoon. Unwelcome memories came back in a sudden, suffocating rush, and inexplicable emotions resurfaced. Ciel felt claws tearing from inside his chest, as though something was begging to be freed. Did they live together? Realization hit Ciel when the possibility that they were married sunk in his mind.

Sebastian had been looking at Ciel the whole time, and noted his reaction when he saw Meredith.

"Ciel," He gripped Ciel's shoulders firmly and said sternly, "I am tired playing this game. Tell me this instant what's wrong, and I won't let you leave until you tell me the truth." Ciel tried to wriggle away, but Sebastian wouldn't let go.

Ciel pursed his lips. There was no avoiding this now. He knew he had no reason not to tell Sebastian, afterall, he couldn't blame him that he had a wife. "You never told me you were married."

Sebastian almost choked, "Married?" he laughed, "What ever made you think I'm married. And most importantly, who could I have been married to?"

Ciel gave him a confused look. "Then who was that girl just now?"

"That's my aunt Meredith, Ciel." Sebastian grinned, "My aunt has this awful obsession with herself, going so far as to pay for plastic surgery to sustain her youthful looks."

Ciel gaped. He couldn't believe it. He had been so preoccupied with his own unproven speculation that he failed to consider other plausible notions. Somehow, he felt as though the weight on his chest had been lifted.

Sebastian smirked, leaning closer to him and purred in his ears, the last word rolling off his tongue seductively, "Is that what all this is about? Were you... jealous?"

Ciel blushed, "N-no!" he tried to pull back from the man, but with every backward movement he made, Sebastian advanced two steps toward him. Ciel whimpered when he somehow ended up lying on the floor with the smug bastard hovering above him, the older man's two hands on either side of his face. All Ciel could see was Sebastian, and he felt like a shrimp in comparison to the other's well-built body.

Sebastian had never been this close to Ciel before, and he was reminded again how sinfully beautiful the little devil was. Sebastian's predatory eyes turned soft, and he felt suddenly mesmerized by Ciel's eyes, which appeared to be bluer than what he remembered them to be.

Ciel looked so powerless as he stared back at him doe-eyed, seeming unable to register what was happening at the moment. His lips quivered, as though he wanted to shout at him to stop but couldn't. Sebastian raised one hand to Ciel's face, wanting to touch him, to wipe out the uncertainty from his face and reassure him that he would not do anything to harm him.

"Ciel," Sebastian breathed hoarsely.

Sebastian seemed to gaze into his very soul, and want completely overwhelmed his mind to a clouded haze. All he wanted at that moment was to plant a kiss to Ciel's rosy lips.

But before his hand could even reach his face, he let it fall down to his side. This was wrong.

Sebastian swallowed and released a breath he didn't realize he was holding. He swiftly stood up and excused himself from the room, leaving a dumbfounded Ciel on the floor to mull over what the hell just happened.

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****Princess is actually the name of our Chow chow at home xD We have another brown chow puppy named Happy lol And as I was writing this scene, I was eating my lunch then Happy started pawing at my knees, asking for a piece of chicken. xD**

**Guys I want your honest opinion, feel free to leave a **_**constructive**_** criticism in the reviews. I'd like to improve in where you think I could improve. I suck at dialogue, and maybe you've noticed that too. Do you think Sebastian and Ciel's conversation's are pretty short? Do I need to be more descriptive? Please review and tell me what you think, I might make the next one longer again. ;) In fact, I'd like to make sure every chapter is 2,500 words at minimum from now on, and hopefully, I could learn to write even longer chapters in the future. I have so much respect for people who can manage writing a multichapter fanfic with 7k+ words/chapter!**

**See you in the next chapter ~**


	4. Chapter 4

**Although no one has complained, I recognize how unrealistically fast-paced Sebastian and Ciel's relationship is going, and I apologize. Please keep in mind that the most I've ever written before this are poems and two-paragraph articles for school. (: Hopefully, I won't repeat this error in future fics.**

**23/168 hours**

Seven days has passed since Ciel has last seen the onyx-haired officer. Ciel's daily, diverse tasks were delivered to him by an appointee named Maylene thereafter that one obscure afternoon in Sebastian's room. His community servicings deviated from things as basic as washing the dishes to as impossible (to Ciel's standards, atleast.) as polishing the neighborhood playground. Ciel was pleased to know that his work now started in the afternoon, he started at 1PM, giving Ciel more than ample time in the morning to sleep more. Everyday, the bubbly maroon-haired woman offered to take Ciel out to eat, and the teen, ever so rigid, had rejected her the the first two times, but after somehow managing to live off the ten dollars Sebastian had given him so sparingly for a few days, eventually Ciel yielded. Ciel hesistated from taking a bite of the gargantuan ten dollar meal at first, but after the the succulent flavor abosrbed in his mouth, his hunger drove him and he greedily wolfed everything down, with Maylene giggling beside him, a pleased grin on her face from noticing that Ciel finally gained some color in his waxen face.

Since then, with the prospect of Maylene's generously portioned dinners for him, Ciel regrettably looked forward to community service. One time, Maylene hadn't turned up the time she usually would, (5 PM), and Ciel worked overtime that time, sure enough, Maylene came running to the room in which he was sloppily washing the walls boredly, and she apologized, even though she wasn't really obliged to come for Ciel at all. Ciel started to see her more of a friend and less of a ball and chain, even he found this out of character for him.

Ciel never questioned why Maylene chose to buy for him food from the more expensive side of the menu, whereas she often would buy a one dollar espresso for herself, and sometimes a macchiato, if she was feeling indulgent. Ciel, feeling remorseful, offered once a chicken leg from his big plate, and Maylene only shook her head. Perhaps she was looking after her weight, Ciel supposed, although Maylene looked rather thin and would probably look better a few pounds heavier.

Maylene's chatty personality, was another story. Ciel valued silence as a quality he looked for a friend, whatever kind of friend that would be, and Maylene was far from it. Ciel strained to find the delight that people accomplish through relentless socializing, but Ciel decided that perhaps Maylene's level of talkativeness was what did not conform to the norm. In the end, Ciel decided that atleast letting Maylene with her rambling was the least he could do for her. Through Maylene's exorbitant and thoughtless ranting, Ciel had found out that Maylene still was just an intern and held no real power over him, and was just appointed to deliver his work to him, and Maylene covered her mouth in realization of her admission. Ciel only chuckled and said that she needn't worry, taking advantage of his friend was in the back of his mind.

Ciel also recently found out that Maylene was half Korean from her mother's asian blood, while her father was American. Ciel snorted and rolled his eyes, thinking that Maylene was just one of those.. What do they call it? 'Koreaboos'. Ciel almost choked on the foie gras, when Maylene removed her thick-lensed glasses and revealed a pair of piercing, sharp, hooded hazel eyes. Maylene looked almost intimidating, it was like Ciel was looking at a different person, and Ciel absentmindedly stared tensing up. Maylene laughed, slipped back her glasses and teased Ciel for the rest of the day.

Soon, that one fateful afternoon was now the least of Ciel's troubles.

"So why the police force, of all things?" Ciel asked, as he took a bite of his fry, thinking of the quintessential portrayal of a cop eating a donut and never getting to the crime scene in time.

Maylene clasped her hands excitedly, as though this was a topic she enjoyed tackling, "I want to help people!" Ofcourse, Ciel wondered why he even asked. What other reason could have attracted people in that line of work, other than seven year old boys who entertained the idea of putting bad guys behind bars as fun. But before Ciel could berate her for poor rationale, the intern added solemnly, "Also, I have an older sister who was put to jail before I was even born."

Ciel nodded, silently urging her to continue, interest slightly piqued.

"I was eight when I first was told that I had an older sister, my natural response ofcourse was to question where she was, afterall, how often do parents tell their children they had a sister they never met?" Maylene joked, but her face was far from flippant, and she sipped her coffee, "My parents said she died young.

"When I turned eighteen, I started to think how unthoughtful it was of them to tell their eight year old child that she had a dead sister, but they finally admitted to me what really happened, along with other incredibly startling facts. Apparently, before they were even married, my mother was in love with a man back in Korea, and she gave birth to a child."

Ciel's eyes dilated, surprised from the sudden shift of atmosphere.

"But apparently, when she was a teenager, she dared to cross the boundary between North and South Korea. Naturally, she was seized immediately by a guard closely watching."

When Maylene didn't speak for a while, Ciel took it as a queue for him to ask questions. "Why did your sister even go there? Everyone knows of the atrocities that takes place in North Korea."

"Exactly."

Ciel gave her a confused look, telling her to explain her answer.

"Like every other citizen there, she couldn't stand the astriction within North Korea."

"I thought you were from the South," Ciel gaped, "And what do you mean, 'like every other citizen there'? I've read they- your people knew nothing of life outside their native country."

Maylene chuckled, and whispered, scanning the restaurant for any potential eavesdropper. "That's what the North Korean government wants you to think. In truth, we know. In fact, not only do the barbarities happen inside concentration camps, but all over the country as a whole. Although it is true that we don't know what does happen outside our homeland, some people are intelligent enough to know the limits of brutality."

Ciel nodded, scrupulously listening to every word that comes out of her mouth.

"When she was put to camp, her father lied that his wife was dead, so that my mother would be spared from being forced to work with them. Somehow, my mother managed to pass through the guards, successfully fled to South Korea, and the rest is self explanatory."

Ciel was shocked once Maylene finally concluded her little story. Ciel had never thought something so abysmal and grim was veiled beneath the chirpy front that was the bespecstacled redhead, Ciel struggled to formulate the right words appropriate for a friend to say, "I'm sorry," was all he could manage in the end, and he mentally kicked himself for his less than helpful comment.

Maylene chuckled and waved her hand, as though trying to propel the brooding air away, "Don't be. My fault for narrating my whole life, when you only asked something so far from it. So to answer your inital question, I never once considered criminology before this sudden revelation, and even thereafter, I still didn't consider it. I hoped to be a soldier, I'm rather good with guns," she winked at the boy "And I'm thinking that one day, if North Korea does declare a war against the world, I might be assigned to fight there," she grinned, "But my parents wouldn't let me, so an officer is the closest thing to the job."

Ciel's shoulders slackened a notch, but he frowned. He thought that was the most stupid decision, what good did that benefit her, letting the past control the bigger part of her future? Not to mention for a person more or less a stranger to her? "If you don't mind me prying a bit more.. What was your sister's name?"

She flashed Ciel a toothy grin, "Mey-Rin!"

Ciel called the waiter to transfer his long-forgotten food in a disposable container, thinking of finishing it tonight or tomorrow morning.

Ciel couldn't help the thoughts that would recurringly wander off to a black haired male. As much as he liked Maylene, his involuntary curiosity wondered why Sebastian suddenly _disappeared_. Whenever Ciel was inside the building, he never once stumbled upon him. At first, it seemed to him as though he was avoiding him, but that didn't make sense to Ciel, why would Sebastian be avoiding him in the first place? So Ciel decided that maybe Sebastian had been very busy as of late, which seemed like a more plausible reason.

Still, that hunch wasn't enough to placate his mind, so he decided it wouldn't hurt to ask Maylene of his whereabouts.

Maylene shrugged and answered that he rarely left his office, and only did once he was finished with work. She finally confessed that Sebastian was the one who instructed her to take him out for dinner everyday, but didn't explain further why. She apologized for not telling him earlier. Ciel didn't seem to mind and was not at all disheartened that Maylene was more or less paid to stand as his friend. Maylene reassured him that whether Sebastian funded him or not, she truly did care and would've still done her best to care for him, jokingly saying that she would've bought one dollar meals for him instead of food from the wasteful high-end restaurants.

The knowledge that Sebastian supplied for him added to his growing bewilderment, Maylene's admission only served to draw more questions. And Ciel didn't enjoy not knowing something, so he decided to take matters into his own hands.

He came to Sebastian's office, only to find a busty woman with tight curls, his secretary apparently, who told him that the Chief had left early, giving Ciel a dirty look as he left.

* * *

Standing at the rugged doorstep, Ciel shifted his feet as he raised his hand to knock on the wood. He started to realize the absurdity of what he was planning to do. _Visit the man who nearly put him to jail. _But he couldn't help it. For the past week, the recurring thought of the man nagged the back of his mind. How soft the locks of hair framed his pale face as he hovered above him and whispered into his ear..

Ciel shook his head and groaned as he caught himself mid-thought. He shouldn't think of him like…that. He was the man that nearly put himself to jail.

Sebastian's Aunt Meredith opened the door, her eyes looked at him for just a second and her lips immediately curled into a grin. "What brings you here dearest?"

"Is Sebastian here?"

"Do make yourself at home, I'll be back!" And she pranced her way to the adjoined room immediately. She was so different from the raven haired man. She was way too noisy for Ciel's taste.

Ciel sat stiffly on the velvet cushioned sofa, as Meredith shuffled to the kitchen and returned promptly, holding in her hand a tray of cream tea and glazed scones, in a sing song voice, she exclaimed, "Help yourself to scones, straight from the oven!" her rosy floral frocks fanning behind her as she waltzed into the parlor. She gingerly placed the platter on the table, and poured some tea for herself and Ciel. Ciel thanked her and took the teacup from the table, taking a tentative sip.

Meredith grinned at him and perched beside him, the sudden displacement making Ciel's haunches sink to the left. Meredith chuckled, a deep, throaty chuckle characteristic to Sebastian's. "So do tell me, little rogue, what's brought you to this den~?", she took a mouthful of the midget cake. She already forgot his answer moments ago.

"I'm here for Sebastian actually," Taking another sip, Ciel fluidly placed the cup back to the table.

Meredith sighed, placing everything in her hands on the table, and eyed him curiously, "He often talks about you, you know." He cupped the boy's chin in his hand and tilted his face, narrowed eyes searched for something.

"M-me?" Ciel, feeling confused and invaded, found the gesture disconcerting, and yanked his head away from her fingers. Questions racked through his head, as he tried to muster up a guess on why Sebastian would've even mention him to her aunt. It was inevitable, since Sebastian brought him here when he fainted, Meredith at some point in the week would've asked about his condition. But_often_? "Why would Sebastian talk about me?"

Meredith ignored him, and whiffed a long dramatic sigh, "I'm rather jealous. Why must I be her aunt, wouldn't we have made a more sightly couple, no?"

But before Ciel could remark, he heard a hoarse voice yawn, the owner starting to descend down the stairs, "Meredith, what is going-" He paused in his tracks when he saw the blue-eyed teen, looking surprised, "Ciel?"

Ciel looked up at the top of the staircase, and saw a disheveled Sebastian, looking as though he'd just been disturbed from his sleep. As much as he tried to tell himself otherwise, Ciel felt a sense of relief wash over him from seeing the man again, "Sebastian." He nodded up at him in greeting, and stood up from his seat.

Sebastian trod down the stairs, his look of discomposure morphing into an unreadable expression, "Why are you here?" he asked tonelessly, his eyes darting to Meredith before focusing back to the boy.

Ciel found out he didn't know either. _Why am I here?_ "I came to ask you something." Ciel mumbled a small reply, starting to feel skeptical of his decision to coming to Sebastian's house.

"Then you better start talking now," cut Sebastian impatiently.

Meredith retreated to the kitchen, leaving the boy with a stony Sebastian. Sebastian's watchful glare penetrated through him, and Ciel felt himself shrinking the more those eyes stared longer. Ciel struggled to find a reason on why Sebastian was acting so bizarre. Sebastian inched closer to him, and soon they faced chest to chest, Ciel feeling reduced to a trapped mouse, and Sebastian the predatory cat. He gulped, hoping to swallow his silly, hallucinated image.

Sebastian, noticing Ciel's shaken face, softened his expression, but did not give away anything otherwise. The older man let his body drop down to the sofa and gave a relaxed sigh, patting on the space behind him, silently inviting Ciel to sit.

Ciel chose to sit on the sofa directly in front of him, still quite stiff, "I hear from Maylene that you've been the one who's giving her money to treat me some dinner." He couldn't think of a more sensible thing to say so he started with that.

Ciel heard Sebastian curse her under his breath, but Sebastian cleared his throat, "Yes," he said and let his hand locate itself to the wooden armrest, "I trust she's been feeding you fitting meals? I admit you're looking better today than a week ago."

Not wanting to let things complicate further, he decided to be straightforward, "..Why are you doing this for me? I deserve to know, the more I try to solve it, the more lost I seem to get. So I decided to confront you and get this over with."

"And what if I refuse to tell you?" Sebastian pressed teasingly.

"You wouldn't! You disappear for one week without a word, and here I find you and demand some answers, only to get cryptic responses!" Ciel snapped, shaking with temper and incredulity, forehead crumpled uglily.

"Instead of shouting at my face, shouldn't you be kissing my feet for my graciousness? For feeding you, when in fact I should be making your life a living hell?" he stood up in front of the other, face dangerously close to his. Ciel shivered when he felt the other's hot breath fan his face. "How cheeky of you, to barge in my home and accuse me?" Sebastian played with a lock of soft slate hair that fell on the boy's face. "Such disrespectful behavior calls for punishment, don't you think?" Red eyes glittered with mirth and excitement.


End file.
